2006-05-nieuwsbronnen-engels

Police said Haynes was remanded to prison until June 27. Haynes, Police reported, is alleged to have hired Goodridge’s vehicle on April 20 from the Stabroek Market to Albouystown and on reaching Hogg Street, he held up Goodridge at knife point and took away $10,780 and escaped.

He is also alleged to have gone to the jewellery stall of Teneram Doodnauth at Stabroek Market on May 22 and requested to try on a gold ring purportedly with a view to buying the ring. Haynes, however, ran away with the jewellery valued $32,000 without paying, but was pursued and caught by public spirited persons, Police alleged. (Guyana Cronicle)

Deputy Chief Immigration Officer Paulette Morrison has been sent on leave to facilitate the investigation into the disappearance of 100 new (blank) passports from the Central Immigration and Passport Office earlier this month.

Morrison could be transferred to another division when she resumes duty some time this week, a source at Eve Leary said. Senior Superintendent, George Vyphuis, former commander of 'G' Division, Essequibo is currently heading the immigration department.

Prior to the discovery that 100 passports had disappeared, the department had been in the news recently when it was revealed that Trinidadian, David Millard also called 'Buffy' had been issued with a Guyana passport some time back. This was uncovered recently when he and another Trinidadian and four Guyanese were found hiding out at a house in Nandy Park which members of the joint services had raided while searching for the missing AK-47 rifles.

Contacted on the status of the investigation into the missing passports, Stabroek News was told by a senior police officer that statements were taken from immigration officers and fingerprints were lifted from the scene. The officer said investigators have made some headway, but would not say in what areas.

On May 1 police reported the theft of the passports. The documents were discovered missing from the Deputy Chief Immigration Officer's office the same day. Police officials had said that the passports were new and had not yet been issued to anyone. The serial numbers of the passports are 1142301 to 1142400.

Investigators had visited the scene upon the discovery that the passports were missing and had found that a padlock had been sawn off which facilitated entry into the room where the passports were secured. Keys might have also been used to facilitate the theft, police said.

The police had advised financial and other institutions not to accept passports bearing the serial numbers of those reported stolen.

Additionally, it was felt that the theft of the passports was likely an inside job. Stabroek News was told by police that whoever stole the passports may want to insert names and photographs and sell them to persons, who do not want to go through the normal procedure for obtaining the document.

The acquisition of a Guyana passport has long been a tedious exercise and despite many promises the situation at the Immigration Office has not improved. On a daily basis hundreds of people could be seen flocking the immigration office to either uplift a new passport or renew an old one.

Sources said it might take years to nab the persons who may buy the stolen passports, but pointed out that in another five years they would have to renew them and immigration officers would always be on the lookout for passports with those serial numbers.

With regard to Morrison, Stabroek News understands that the stolen passports might have already contained her signatures, which leaves persons only to insert their photographs and names. According to sources there have been several other discrepancies at the immigration, some of which never came to light. Currently the immigration office is being manned by police ranks. The Disciplined Services Commission report had advised government to free policemen/women from those duties and give them to civilians. No action has been taken on that so far.

Meanwhile, Millard who fled to Guyana from Trinidad and Tobago in 2003 was able to acquire a Guyanese passport, using the name Edmond De Freitas. It is not clear how Millard managed this, since it requires, among other things, a Guyana birth certificate, to get a passport. When Stabroek News contacted the General Registrar's Office yesterday, an officer said that she was not aware that Millard obtained a birth certificate.

The official said as far as she knew the police only discovered Millard having in his possession a Guyanese passport. Stabroek News was told that it was possible for Millard to have obtained a passport without submitting the necessary documents. According to a source the same way the 100 new passports went missing, one could have been leaked to Millard and the necessary insertion of his name and photograph done. The source said too that someone at the immigration office could have also conspired to give him a passport without asking for his birth certificate. Millard was extradited to Trinidad earlier this month.

On August 21, 2004 Millard and Abu Bakr, also known as Lennox Phillip, leader of the Jamaat al Muslimeen in Trinidad were arrested and charged jointly with conspiring to murder Rasheed and Zaki Aubaidah, Bakr's son-in-law. Millard was charged in absentia after he fled to Guyana the year before.

Trinidad had sought Guyana's assistance in capturing Millard, but except for information about him being on an island in the Essequibo River nothing else had been heard about him. Millard had told local investigators that he was the bodyguard of a well-known businessman. (Stabroek News)

Teams targeting banks

Police, bankers warn

TEAMS of bandits on motorcycles and in cars are targeting banks, keeping a close watch on customers withdrawing or depositing large sums, Police and bankers warned yesterday. The warning came after bandits, who were tracking them, robbed two more persons who had just withdrawn money from two banks in Georgetown Monday. Bank officials said it was clear that criminals are now targeting banks and the Police announced that they have launched “overt and covert operations” against the gangs.

Police, in a statement, said that as a result of the new operations against criminal elements engaged in such activities, two men, one with a gun, were last Friday nabbed outside the National Bank of Industry and Commerce (NBIC) in Georgetown. The statement said the Police are also investigating two incidents on Monday when persons having conducted business with banks, were later attacked and robbed by armed men who had traced them using motor vehicles.

The first involved a building contractor, Imtiaz Baksh, 32, of Grove Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara, who was attacked and robbed at around 11:11 h after completing a business transaction at a Water Street bank.

Police said Baksh had stopped at a store on Mandela Avenue, Alexander Village and while in front of the business place chatting with the driver of the taxi he was using, a burgundy motor car with suspected false number plates PKK 268, drove up and a man armed with a handgun held them up and relieved them of a bag that contained more than $814,000. The bandit escaped in the waiting car.

And at around 13:00 h, Ashraf Ahmad, 36, a diamond driller of La Grange, West Bank Demerara, cashed cheques at two city banks and proceeded to a store in Church Street, leaving the money totalling some $712,000 with his wife, who was in a taxi outside.

Two men rode up on a motor cycle and the pillion rider, who was armed with a handgun, stuck up the wife, took away the bag with the money and escaped on the motor cycle, Police said. Resulting from the incidents and previous ones, the Police are alerting members of the public to exercise caution when going about their business, having withdrawn from or proceeding to banks with large sums of money.

Police said the bandits are operating in teams using motor cars or motor cycles and persons should be alert to their being followed by such persons. In some instances, persons are followed having left the bank and in other instances the perpetrators plant themselves in the bank and alert their accomplices outside with the use of cell phones, the statement added.

Mr. Leslie Glen, Banking Manager at the Bank of Guyana, in an invited comment yesterday, said the Central Bank would no doubt be concerned about any form of threat to the financial institution. But according to him, the use of security is not only the responsibility of the financial institutions but customers as well, and as such the public at large has a vital role to play. He said, too, the heightened crime situation points to the need for a shift towards the use of non-cash instruments in doing business.

Glen said that as an example, the Central Bank would like to see the use of non-cash instruments in the transfer of value. In addition, employers of large business enterprises and contractors should as an effect of payment, transfer monies directly into the account of workers; the public should also be encouraged to use cheques as a point of sale, as well as make payment of utility bills via the telephone, he said.

The latter, he argued, will benefit the public in terms of convenience, time and a reduction of risks to transfer value. As it relates to the deposit aspect, Glen feels businesses should be encouraged to accept non-cash settlement so as to eliminate persons having to move around with large amounts of cash, while too, reducing the movement of large sums of money from one place to another.

However, in the event it is imperative that large sums of cash have to be moved, the onus is on the businesses involved to ensure that adequate security is in place. Glen suggested too, that businesses should without delay, seek to review the behavioural pattern when it comes to banking or depositing any form of money, be it cash or cheques.

A senior official of Citizens Bank had similar sentiments. The official said, too, the issue of security for clients and personnel is always treated as priority by the institution, more so now that there is such heightened awareness. Noting that the service is extended to all of its branches, the official said that its banking procedures are also constantly under review.

He, however, is urging customers to be ever vigilant of their surroundings when transacting business and seek to avoid any risky behaviour that may attract the attention of criminal-minded elements. Officials at other major banks were not available for comment yesterday.

The Police had cause to, earlier this month, investigate a report that a clerk attached to an Avenue of the Republic business was robbed of $2M while standing inside the NBIC on Water Street, as he awaited transportation in the lobby. Two men reportedly entered the bank, held him at gunpoint and took away a bag containing the money. They subsequently escaped on a motor cycle. (Wendella Davidson/Guyana Cronicle)

Director of the Criminal Investigation Bureau, Robert Gates believes that there are three heavily armed gangs on the prowl and equipped with high-powered weaponry including AK-47s and M-70s.

He said these groups were the Buxton-based gang and another two being operated by drug lords. According to Gates, intelligence suggests that among the three gangs they are about 30 AK-47 rifles, 12 M-70, six G-3 and around six M-10 rifles.

He said what was needed now was for the joint services to infiltrate these gangs using criminal elements as informants. This, he acknowledged, would require some sort of incentive for the informants. "These gangs can be infiltrated but the authorities need to come up with a better plan of dealing with them."

A private investigator himself, Gates feels that the government should privatise the probe into the missing AK-47 rifles and the slaying of Agriculture Minister Satyadeow Sawh and three others.

Gates, who completed a number of courses in crime fighting, posits that government's current approach of begging for external help to solve these cases would not bring about the speedy result that was needed. He said that he knew many reputable investigating firms overseas whose members are former officers with Scotland Yard and the US Federal Bureau of Investigation.

According to him government had access to some of these firms and it was now time for them to hire one to conduct the investigations. During an interview with Stabroek News last week Gates remarked that the present search for the missing army weapons would not accomplish much.

Since announcing that the weapons - 30 AK-47s included - had been stolen the police and army have launched a massive campaign to recover them. So far, a number of places and homes of prominent people have been searched but none of the weapons has been found.

Gates said that most likely if the weapons are in Guyana they would be stashed somewhere along the Soesdyke/Linden Highway, somewhere close to the East Demerara conservancy, or on an island in the Essequibo River. Gates said that he has picked up raw intelligence which suggests that the weapons were sold overseas.

Gates believes that the difficulties the joint services have encountered so far in recovering the weapons should cause government to seek private help in gathering information.

"Intelligence is all about gathering information on planned criminal activities and you get that sort of information from the public. Right now the public does not have any confidence in the police and this would make it very difficult for them to get the necessary information to solve these cases."

Gates said privatising the intelligence gathering can be a starting point, noting that the only way to recover those weapons is to gather word from the street. In relation to Sawh's killing Gates said that there remained a number of unanswered questions. He said that the killing was definitely not a robbery.

Gates added that there is evidence to suggest that the minister who was at Le Meridien Pegasus Hotel prior to his killing was followed from there to his home. Gates queried why his vehicle was not intercepted and attacked by gunmen on the way home or the minister ambushed as he got out of the vehicle and entered his yard.

Another question to be asked, Gates said, was whether the minister was directly responsible for the revocation of a permit which had been given out. He said that the gunmen's modus operandi should also be examined to determine whether it resembles an act of revenge, or one intended to drive fear into the community. On the question of the gunmen's weapons, Gates said that detectives should find out whether the weapons used were activated to fire at the automatic or semi-automatic mode.

He is asking too whether there is conclusive ballistic evidence to suggest that the weapons used to kill Sawh and his family were indeed the ones used in the Agricola shooting and what expert tests were done to corroborate these findings. On the question of external assistance Gates said that this can help but foreign officers should come and be allowed to conduct the investigations.

Gates is currently working alongside US-trained, criminologist, Errol Vannooten on a number of high-profile investigations across the country. (Stabroek News)

Police are expected to resend the file on the probe into the death of Guyana Defence Force (GDF) cadet Amar Rajcumar to the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) shortly, according to Crime Chief Henry Greene. Rajcumar had collapsed and died during a training session at Camp Stephenson on April 11.

Yesterday Greene told Stabroek News that police had sent the file to the DPP for advice. It was returned and the police were told to do some additional investigation, which they are now pursuing. After the file is resent the DPP would advise the police on what course of action should be taken regarding the death of the young man.

Foul play is suspected in Rajcumar's death. A post-mortem examination found, among other things, that he died of blunt cranial trauma (a blow to his head).

The report had also revealed that the young man suffered subdural haemorrhage (a blood clot on the brain).

The 21-year-old man had joined the GDF a mere nine days prior to his death and family members are convinced that he did not die a natural death. They have called on the authorities to ensure that whoever is responsible is brought to justice.

In an initial terse release the GDF had said at approximately 12:45 hrs on April 11, the cadet officers were involved in a physical training session. During the session, Rajcumar collapsed. The release had said he was immediately taken to the medical centre at Base Camp Stephenson where the medic on duty referred him to the Georgetown Hospital, but he was pronounced dead on arrival at 2.45 pm.

"A Board of Inquiry has been launched to investigate the circumstances surrounding this incident," the release had said. The training officer who was with Rajcumar at the time of his death has since been removed from the programme.

The young man was a presidential guard for two years before joining the army. He had applied to enter the cadet programme through the police force but was turned down because of limited years of service and his age. So determined he was, he resigned and decided to enter the programme through the army.

Chief of Staff Edward Collins had told other sections of the media that from the post-mortem report it was obvious that the young man was murdered. So far in their investigations the police have not encountered anyone who said they saw Rajcumar being hit in the head or attacked by anyone.

However, Stabroek News was told following the post-mortem report that when the young man died he was involved in physical assault training and he and five others were in the vicinity of Camp Sipu when he collapsed. This newspaper was told that this aspect of the programme entails tough physical training that saw the officers running and crossing obstacles. Further, Stabroek News was told that at no time was the young man alone and as soon as he collapsed he was rushed to the medical centre before being transferred to the Georgetown Public Hospital where he was pronounced dead.

Rajcumar is the fourth cadet to have died during training since the programme came into existence in 1970. One cadet died from drowning in the 1980s and following that two collapsed and died after a run. (Stabroek News)

The father of missing taxi driver, Ramlall Lakha, has accepted that his son is no more but hopes that one day he would find his remains and give him a proper burial to bring closure to the issue.

Rudolph Lakha of Public Road, La Grange, West Coast Demerara told Stabroek News he had given up hope of ever finding his son alive again. He spoke of his constant illness since his son disappeared. Lakha said it appeared the police had given up the case even before he did and he no longer visited any police station to keep the investigation alive. He said he has now accepted the tragic fact and there was nothing else he could do.

The man had told this newspaper previously that he believed his son was killed and buried in the area behind the South Dakota Circuit since a search of the area had unearthed the shell of the young man's missing AT 103 Carina. The licence plate HB 2839 and a few items, which belonged to the young taxi driver were also found in the area.

Lakha had taken a team of about 50 persons into the area in late March and after hours of searching they found the shell of the car. There, he had also encountered a young man who said he had knowledge of what had happened to his son. Lakha had said initially the man was reluctant to speak but when he was promised a small fee he spoke of a Canter that went into the area transporting things including car parts.

The man was handed over to the police at the Timehri Police Station but a few days later he was released as the police said they had no evidence to keep the man in custody. "I don't understand, because the man say he know who kill meh son," the man said. Lakha said he returned to the area after the man was released but found nothing of significance.

He said he had then visited Brickdam Police Station but was told that he should go to the Timehri Police Station as his son's car was found there. However, when he visited Timehri he was told to go to Sparendaam, as his son once lived in an area covered by that station. After travelling to that station he was told to return to Brickdam.

"When I went back to Brickdam dem again tell me to go to Timehri but I just didn't go back because by this time me done fed-up and me pressure raising and I getting really sick. So I just accept dat me son dead and I hope I see he body someday," the man lamented. The police never issued a statement on the man's disappearance.

It has been almost three months since Ramlall Lakha vanished. He was working as a taxi driver serving many areas but mainly West Coast Demerara. On the day he disappeared, persons recalled seeing him making rounds in the area. He was married and living on the East Coast and had dropped off his wife at her place of employment that morning. When he did not show up again, his wife contacted his relatives.

He had reportedly picked up two persons and was last seen crossing the Demerara Harbour Bridge. Another taxi driver, Deonarine Sukhdeo, 21, who went missing in late March, was found dead last month. (Stabroek News)

Guyana offers to assist flood-hit Suriname

President Bharrat Jagdeo has contacted his Surinamese counterpart President Ronald Venetiaan and expressed his solidarity and his government’s willingness to assist Guyana’s eastern neighbour. The Head of State said that once President Venetiaan indicates what type of assistance is required, then Guyana would be ready to lend a helping hand. Suriname has been struck by devastating floods and food and other supplies are dropped off via aircraft to those affected.

Prime Minister Samuel Hinds on May 17 in a message to President Venetiaan had indicated Guyana’s willingness to assist, “the government and people of Suriname in any way necessary at this difficult time with a view to alleviating some of the tremendous suffering occasioned by this tragedy.” A recent BBC Caribbean news report revealed that about 175 villages close to the Suriname and Marowijne rivers in southeastern and central Suriname are the worst affected.

A team from the United Nations (UN) has been deployed to Suriname to offer relief assistance to over 30,000 victims hit by the disaster. Several parts of Suriname’s interior were declared disaster areas by President Venetiaan on May 8 after unprecedented and torrential rainfall commenced at the beginning of the month. (Guyana Cronicle)

Five men are under investigation in the brutal slaying of the two Air Services Ltd (ASL) security guards and the soon-to-be completed file will be sent to the Chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for advice, according to Commander of 'C' Division, Assistant Commissioner Leroy Brummell.

Brummell on Tuesday told Stabroek News that the five men were arrested and later placed on bail as the investigation continued. The commander would not divulge the circumstances under which the men were arrested. Asked if the police had any evidence against the men which would indicate that they might have been involved in the killings, Brummell said they were, "acting on information" and did not have evidence against the men.

The commander related that even though the men, who were not all arrested at the same time, were on bail they had to report to the Sparendaam Police Station on a regular basis.

The battered and bound bodies of Chandradeo Arjun and Hemraj Saroop, of Industry and Cummings Lodge respectively, were discovered at the company's Ogle location early on the morning of Easter Monday. The motive behind their murders is still not clear. No money was taken from the company and Brummell revealed that most of the persons under investigation were from the areas where the men lived.

When contacted, General Manager of ASL, Fazel Khan, told Stabroek News that as far as he knew there were no major developments in the case.

Chandradeo Arjun

The killers had escaped with Saroop's car, PHH 3445, which was later found abandoned at Drury Lane, Campbellville the morning after the bodies were found. The killers also took away a computer and a security control system and monitor.

While from all indications the bandits did not enter the company through the entrance of the Ogle Airport, but rather from the back of ASL, they left using that entrance in the car which is known to security personnel who would not have found it strange.

Asked if ASL did any internal investigation to establish whether there may have been some inside collaboration in the killing, Khan said this had been ruled out not only by the company but also by the police. It was suspected that the break-in might have been an inside job since the bandits reportedly had the keys for the safe in the accounts department, though they did not manage to open it before escaping.

Khan said they are in the process of implementing new security measures at the facility.

Spokesperson for the management of the Ogle Airport, Kit Nascimento, had also told Stabroek News that management met and discussed the security implications arising from the slayings. He had said they were waiting for the police to complete their investigation into the double murder. Nascimento had noted that the incident was not committed at the airport itself but on a company located in the vicinity. (Stabroek News)

Washington, D.C., May 17, 2006 (PAHO) -- The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) is providing expert disaster assistance to help Suriname cope with severe flooding that has affected up to 20,000 people and left large areas of the country submerged.

Torrential rains that began falling on May 5 caused serious flooding in the country's interior, with as much as 30,000 square kilometers under water at one point, including some 157 thatched-roof villages. Thousands were forced to abandon their homes and their livelihoods.

"The situation has improved somewhat in the western part of the country," says PAHO Representative Stephen Simon. "But in the eastern areas, people are living on small islands that are now completely flooded. Many people have received food rations, but clean drinking water and good sanitation are priorities, as is continued food assistance, since most of the affected families have lost all their crops."

PAHO has a permanent office in Suriname and was able to provide assistance early in the unfolding crisis. Its staff helped Suriname's National Centre for Disaster Control set up a crisis center, giving support on logistics, finance and administration, information technology, and communications.

With the country's water and sanitation under threat, PAHO brought in an international expert in sanitary engineering, who has carried out an initial assessment and made recommendations for improvement. In addition, PAHO has ordered a shipment of water purification tablets that will assure each family in the affected area an adequate supply of clean drinking water. "It's a simple measure that will help preventing cases of diarrhea among the displaced people in the area," noted Simon.

PAHO has also mobilized experts from its emergency and disaster program to assist in health needs assessment and resource mobilization. These experts are helping local health authorities reduce and control flood-associated health risks, including primarily malaria and diarrhea, and also potentially leptospirosis and typhoid fever.

At the request of Surinamese authorities, PAHO is also deploying its computerized humanitarian supply management system known as LSS/SUMA. A team of SUMA experts is providing support to the national response center and training local staff to use the system.

PAHO was established in 1902 and is the world's oldest public health organization. It serves as the Regional Office for the Americas of the World Health Organization and works with its member countries to improve the health and quality of life of all the people of the Americas. (Source: Pan American Health Organization (PAHO)

This situation report is based on information provided by the United Nations Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) team and the International Federation of the Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies (IFRC).

1. Water levels in some villages in the East are still rising, while in the Upper Suriname area the water continues to recede and people are returning to their villages. The situation of the displaced in the East is serious as, unlike in the upper Suriname area, it is more difficult to evacuate to higher grounds. Many villages built on small islands in the river are now completely flooded. More rain is expected in the southern region in the near future.

2. According to media reports, thousands of inhabitants of flooded settlements in the South have fled to French Guyana and Brazil. The Medical Mission (MM) has confirmed an increase in the incidence of diarrhea in the Amer-Indian villages of Tepoe and Sipaliwini near the Brazilian border.

4. Stored rainwater, which is used for drinking, is quickly diminishing. A water treatment plant (slow sand filter) in Bendekondre along the Upper Suriname River has reportedly been repaired, including the UV disinfection installation. However, according to PAHO/WHO, UV disinfection is insufficient in emergency situations in which water is transported and stored in open containers.

5. PAHO warns that malaria is endemic in the interior of Suriname. Malaria prophylaxis and bed netting are recommended for relief workers. Also recommended are yellow fever and hepatitis vaccinations.

6. The transport situation is improving. The main road to the south, connecting with Atjoni, is being repaired. The Government has reported that boat traffic on the rivers has diminished, which is hampering the distribution of food and water from main distribution points as well as access to medical centres.

7. Many teachers have left the affected areas for Paramaribo. The Ministry of Education will try to bring them back to their villages as soon as the situation improves. Efforts are being made to continue education in the schools that also serve as temporary shelters. The Ministry of Health (MoH) is also looking into education options in the areas where displaced persons have gone/evacuated.

8. The UNDAC team concluded three assessment missions. Two were conducted by land: one in the Upper Suriname river area with a team of the Dutch police and another one in the East with the representative from ECHO. The third assessment was done by helicopter with the Ministry of Defense in the East of the country. Visits to a lot of villages in the South still remain to be conducted.

9. The UNDAC team has identified logistics, fuel, and safe drinking water as outstanding overall priority relief needs. Food, sanitary measures for excreta disposal and shelter materials are considered additional priorities in the East.

10. The most urgent food, water and shelter needs have been met. Current needs are for compensation of damaged crops, replacement of damaged food stocks, school material, repair of generators, fuel, stocks of medicines, repair or replacement of hand tools for woodwork and reconstruction of houses. In Djumu, about 75% of the houses are not yet inhabited because of wet floors and 70% of the stored food has been destroyed. People are staying in other houses.

However there is no acute food shortage and the electricity supply is working. In Semoissie, 150 of the 300 houses are flooded. In Botopasie, the Suriname Red Cross (SRC) has made a detailed inventory of the damage and needs and forwarded it to the NCCR. Not all of the expected food parcels have arrived. The medical centre is not functioning well due to a shortage of personnel and stocks, and a damaged generator.

11. In villages along the banks of the Marowijne River, fuel, food, medicines, and drinking water are needed. The primary road from Paramaribo to Mungo and the secondary road from Mungo to Langatabiki (ca 100 km) are in good condition. The bridges can be used by medium-size trucks. All villages face a shortage of boats and fuel. Most of the houses in Nason, Tabiki Ede, and Skintabiki and all houses in Loka-Loka have been flooded.

In Langatabiki, 5 to10% of the houses have been damaged and the medical centre lacks basic drugs. Villagers report a need for plastic sheeting. Community leaders are proposing to build two barracks on higher ground to serve as temporary shelters. The school has been flooded and is not functional, and the community is setting one up in another location. The medical centre in Nason is flooded and not functioning.

Food is one of the priorities, especially for the small proportion of inhabitants who have moved away from their villages to higher ground or the forest. The delivery and distribution of food and bottled water is well organized, but because the size of families tends to range between 5-10 people, the food parcels, which are based on a family size of 5, are insufficient for one week.

12. The helicopter survey in the area along the Marowijne River in Stoelmanseiland region has shown that large areas are flooded. The region can only be reached by helicopter or boat. Several islands have been totally flooded. In some areas, people live in houses totally surrounded by water. Many families are temporarily living together in improvised shelters on higher grounds. The inhabitants have identified sheeting, tarpaulins, food, and fuel as their main priorities.

The MM network is functioning but running out of medicines. As the medical centres are located on higher ground, some are serving as evacuation centres. Food parcels have been dropped in the area. The SRC, the army, and local NGOs are distributing food by boat. Distributions have apparently started on 12 May. The only available water is rain and river water. Neither latrines nor water purification systems or tablets are available.

13. The delivery of food continues. As of 13 May, 7,277 food packages had been delivered in five days. Most affected villages have received food parcels, with assistance from the extensive network of local NGOs and the local community structures. As people have lost their crops and the contents of food parcels only cover the needs of a 5-person family for 5 days, there will be a sustained need for food until agricultural plots produce again.

The contents of the food packages are being modified to improve their usability by affected people (given fuel constraints) and to improve their nutrient content. Distribution occurs via nine Government nodes in the affected region, and is done based on a prioritization system of needs. The priority area is switching from the upper Suriname region to the southern and eastern regions. Distribution in the eastern region continues to be difficult. Air drops by helicopter are being considered.

14. The Ministry of Health (MOH) has activated five task forces: Disease Surveillance, Medical Supply, Water and Sanitation, PR, and Quick Response. The MOH is updating its inventory of medical supplies and pharmaceuticals; details are forthcoming. Until now, only a shortage of Hepatitis A vaccine has been reported.

15. MM, focal point for Disease Surveillance, began active surveillance last weekend. They will report on incidences of respiratory track infection, diarrhea, malaria, fever, hepatitis, and paralyses in children. MM has an existing agreement with the MOH to provide basic health care services and maintain medical records of the interior population. A recent MM survey counted 37,000 people in the affected areas of the interior of Suriname. As stated in the previous UNDAC report, of the 52 MM clinics, 51 are operational (three of which had to relocated to higher ground).

According to PAHO, all medical supplies and medications have been rescued from the flooded clinics. All medical personnel have been recalled from leave. MM operates several river boats in order to access areas inaccessible by road or air. A week before the flooding began, a child vaccination program, including yellow fever, was completed in the eastern part of the affected region (information on coverage is pending).

16. A daily medical surveillance system is in place. A rapid response team has been established to do quick epidemic investigations in the case of outbreaks. The biggest constraint is getting to the clinics. The national coordination team has requested boats from the local population and the military.

17. MM has initiated a health and sanitation public information campaign. MM plans to mobilize volunteers for additional outreach for malaria, diarrhea, and other water-borne disease prevention.

20. One Dutch frigate equipped with 5 helicopters, surgical and water purification facilities and with capacity to transport cargo will arrive on Friday, 19 May. The military will closely cooperate with the UNDAC team.

21. A Couglar helicopter from Brazil has arrived. It has capacity for 14 passengers and 300 kg of cargo. Its first relief assistance and assessment mission, including one UNDAC team member, was conducted today, 16 May, in the East an water and food have been delivered to Stoelmanseiland.

22. Two PAHO/WHO water and sanitation engineers are working with the MM, local engineers, and the Suriname Red Cross (SRC) on water and sanitation interventions.

23. The IFRC has launched an emergency appeal for USD 706,309 to assist 4000 families for 5 months. The objective is to provide family food and hygiene parcels and plastic sheeting for up to 4000 families (20,000 people) in the southern and eastern parts of Suriname.

24. At the request of the UNDAC team, IFRC has agreed to facilitate coordination of the shelter sector.

25. Six IFRC staff members have arrived, with water-sanitation and shelter expertise.

26. The SRC has received 4,000 hygiene kits from the IFRC; distribution began yesterday, 15 May. A further 4,000 food parcels from IFRC are scheduled for arrival on May 19.

27. The 2,000 blankets, 2,000 stretchers, tarpaulins, and mosquito nets that the Dutch Government is sending are to be consigned to the NCCR.

28. A four-member reinforcement team of the NGO MapAction will arrive today, 16 May, to increase the mapping capacity of the team that is already present.

29. OCHA remains in close contact with the office of the United Nations Resident Coordinator and will continue reporting as further information is made available.

30. This situation report, together with the information on contributions and other ongoing emergencies, is also available on the OCHA Internet Website at http://www.reliefweb.int

Policeman accused of brutalising reputed wife arrested

A POLICEMAN accused of brutalising his reputed wife in March, following an argument over a missing unlicensed gun, is under close arrest at Central Police Station in New Amsterdam, Berbice. The cop was arrested last weekend and a senior officer in ‘B’ Division, said a file on the case is expected to be sent, shortly, to the chambers of the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) for advice.

The Sunday Chronicle of April 2 carried the report in which the battered young woman recalled the latest incident that has left her seriously injured. Her teeth are now loosely fitted in her mouth and her hair is close shaven on one side but full length on the other part of her head.

The victim had the imprint of a boot sole on her back, chest and thighs while her right arm and left leg were fractured. Bruises were also evident on her back and thighs after she was dragged down a stairway.

She was brutalised allegedly by her reputed husband not for the first time since they have been together for more than a year, the woman stated. She said past attempts to end the relationship always caused her more beating. (Guyana Cronicle)

Relatives, friends and colleagues of Brazilian policeman Orlando Tamer Ramos mourn at the Sao Paulo Police Academy while accompanying his coffin to a hearse after he was shot dead by gangsters. REUTERS/Rickey Rogers.

At least 52 people, mostly police and prison guards, have been killed in shoot-outs and attacks over Friday and Saturday nights, the state security office said yesterday.

The bloodshed was unleashed by a powerful criminal gang in retaliation for the transfer of imprisoned gang members to a remote penitentiary. Prisoners have also rioted in 36 penitentiaries, the security office said. "We are all indignant and in a state of mourning," Sao Paulo city mayor Gilberto Kassab said on Saturday night. "It's not a war. It's a battle, which we will win."

A total of 100 attacks have been counted since the gangsters armed with grenades and machine guns first struck on Friday night, hitting police posts and other targets in rich and poor areas of the city and other locations in the state.

The latest wave included the drive-by shooting early yesterday morning of a police post at Itapecerica da Serra on the Regis Bittencourt highway, a main road running west from the city. Police chased and killed the three attackers, a state security spokesman said. As of yesterday morning, 35 police and prison guards had been killed as well as three civilians and 14 gangsters. A further 53 people have been wounded, the state security office said.

Police say the violence was launched by the notorious First Command of the Capital, or PCC in Portuguese, one of the most powerful of Brazil's organized crime operations, after authorities transferred 765 prisoners to a new penitentiary 620 km from the capital. The transfer of prisoners, including Marcos Willians Herbas Camacho, or Marcola, considered the PCC chief, was an attempt to defuse a multi-prison rebellion allegedly planned for this weekend.

Sao Paulo -- the third-biggest city in the world with around 20 million people -- has long been plagued by violent crime. It is the command and control centre for drug trafficking in Latin America's largest country, which is a transit point for cocaine destined for Africa and Europe as well as Brazil's domestic market.

The scale of the coordinated attacks took police by surprise, however. "The intelligence services need to anticipate these things so that it can take the necessary measures and stop them from happening. This was a big error," Jose Vicente da Silva, a security expert and former top public security official, told Reuters. Links between corrupt police officer and gangs fuelled the problem, he said.

New riots broke out in prisons across the state just as authorities managed to bring some under control. The state prison service said rioting had erupted in 36 of state's 106 correctional facilities. (Guyana Cronicle)

PARAMARIBO, Suriname (AP) - Days of rain near Suriname's southern border have deluged Amerindian farmland, forcing villagers to cross into neighboring French Guiana and Brazil in search of food, a tribal association said Friday.

Amerindian villages were submerged under muddy water and more than 3,000 indigenous people have fled across the borders in recent days, the Association of Amerindian Village Heads said.

Crops and livestock of the Wayana and Trio tribes from Amerindian settlements close to the country's southern border with Brazil have been killed after the rains caused rivers to burst their banks and deluge villages and farmland, the group said.

Some thatched-hut villages populated by descendants of West African slaves known as Maroons remained submerged beneath 6 feet of muddy water on Friday.

Floods triggered by lashing rains have killed at least three people and left up to 22,000 homeless along riverbanks in Suriname's lowlands, aid workers said. The rains started on May 1.

The United States Agency for International Development said the vast majority of subsistence farms and nearly two-thirds of livestock, household goods and equipment have been destroyed in the flooded zones.

May is the beginning of the rainy season in Suriname, on the northeastern shoulder of South America. While downpours are not uncommon during the country's rainy season from May to July, rainfall of this magnitude was unprecedented, government officials said. (Guardian Unlimited/AP Photo XBL103 by ARNY BELFOR Associated Press Writer )

Acting Chief Magistrate Cecil Sullivan yesterday issued an arrest warrant for Premnauth Guya Dutt Persaud called `Gorky', who allegedly tried to ship over 9kg of cocaine concealed in boxes of frozen seafood out of Guyana in March.

Persaud, 38, of Lot 31 Ruimzight Gardens, West Coast Demerara, 48 Meten-Meer-Zorg, WCD and Capoey and Queenstown on the Essequibo Coast allegedly committed the offence of trafficking in narcotics on March 17 at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, Timehri.

The facts surrounding the case are that on the day in question Persaud, a businessman, went to the Amerijet Air Cargo service located at the airport to export frozen fish, shrimp, chowmein, pepper sauce, food seasoning and barbecue sauce to the USA. After submitting documents to the airline agent he put another man in charge and left the airport. The goods were later loaded onto the aircraft. At that point Customs Anti-Narcotics Unit (CANU) ranks received certain information. As a result the boxes were offloaded and searched. The search revealed cocaine concealed between frozen fish and shrimp.

CANU's prosecutor Oswald Massiah yesterday asked the court to issue an arrest warrant. He stated that efforts to locate Persaud at several addresses including his business place at Meten-Meer-Zorg were futile. The prosecutor told the court that it seems as if Persaud had gone into hiding. After his request was granted Massiah asked for the seized goods to be destroyed since they are no longer fit for human consumption. (Stabroek News)

THE former husband of a close relative of the two young children and bed-ridden grandmother burnt alive in their humble home this week, has been charged with murdering them.

Police charged Arsha Ally, 29, of Good Hope, East Bank Essequibo, with three counts of murder following investigations into the gruesome torching deaths.

Ally appeared yesterday before Magistrate Mr. Fazil Azeez at the Vreed-en-Hoop Magistrate’s Court, West Coast Demerara and was remanded to prison until June 20, Police said.

Anida Bowling, aged just one year and seven months, her four-year-old sister, Devika Bowling, and their 66-year-old grandmother, Victoria Benjamin, all perished when fire broke out in their Parika Backdam, East Bank Essequibo home before dawn Tuesday.

Survivors said a channa bomb (crude Molotov cocktail) hurled into the small wooden house where the family was asleep, started the blaze that left the three dead and one badly burnt. Glarey Bowling, from her hospital bed, said that some unusual sounds from outside the house in the farming community woke her up at about 02:40 h Tuesday.

She said she had been asleep in the upper section of the tiny two storey house – really a ten by sixteen foot hut raised on stilts with the bottom enclosed – which she shared with her mother and seven of her ten children. Her father and two other relatives slept downstairs.
Bowling told the Guyana Chronicle that by the time she had a chance to get up and investigate the noises, what was later revealed to be a channa bomb was hurled onto her bed.

It caught fire immediately, she said, recalling how she grabbed her two youngest children who were on fire since the incendiary device was hurled directly on them. As a result her hands were badly burnt and she could no longer endure the heat and flames that engulfed her.

Fourteen-year-old survivor Onissa Bowling told this newspaper that she was awakened by her mother ordering them to “throw water, throw water.”

She got up to find her younger brother trying to break open a window, while a fire blazed “all around”. She said by the time they had opened the door and escaped, her two siblings and her grandmother had already been burnt to death. During her initial attempts to escape, she said she looked through a window and saw two men walking away from the house. (Guyana Cronicle)

An air bridge to the disaster areas in neighbouring Suriname began yesterday with planes carrying relief supplies flying continuously throughout the day, reports said. According to de Ware Tijd's English Bulletin, there had earlier been reports that the military and police teams sent in to aid victims in areas of Suriname hit by disastrous flooding over the last week did not have the right material to provide physical assistance

Parliament Speaker Paul Somohardjo, who said the government should act more quickly in giving aid, was set to meet President Ronald Venetiaan and Lieutenant Colonel Jerry Slijngard of the disaster relief committee to determine how far the government has gone with preparations regarding aid, the newspaper said. Parliamentarian Ronnie Brunswijk had expressed disappointment at the fact that he had been in the disaster area almost daily since Sunday and found that people had no food.

However, on Wednesday two planes left for disaster areas carrying water, fuel, hammocks, cooking oil, rice and canned food, de Ware Tijd said. The National Coordination Centre Disaster Relief (NCCR) has reported that aid posts were established at various points from where emergency aid would be further distributed.

Meanwhile, the UN Disaster Assessment and Coordination (UNDAC) agency has sent aid workers to Suriname to give emergency assistance to victims of the flooded areas in the hinterland. A fact-finding mission of six persons arrived in Suriname on Wednesday after President Venetiaan asked for aid from the United Nations and the international community.

The team of disaster experts will make an inventory of the damage and needs. The European Union is also offering assistance by sending an assessment team also to determine what help is needed. The United Nations Office for Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) has made an emergency donation of US$30,000 for acute humanitarian help while other UN branches are also contributing.

The US Peace Corps Suriname said it would provide volunteers to help in government operations. "What we cannot do is provide money and material," Country Director Charles Childers said. He added that the Peace Corps was able to provide people with good organizational and logistical knowledge who can also act as interpreters in case aid organizations are unable to understand the victims.

In addition to the international organizations pitching in to assist with disaster relief, state-owned companies and some private enterprises have donated a total of around SRD2.3M (US$850,000) to victims of the flooded hinterland areas. President Venetiaan who had earlier urged state companies to contribute to the disaster relief effort received the donations.

Finance Minister Humphrey Hildenburg has been charged with managing the funds of which State Oil donated US$500,000 and Telesur US$25,000. The Port Authority, Maritime Authority Suriname and Habrinbank also gave donations.

Hydrometeorologist Sieuwnath Naipal, Head Lecturer at the Anton de Kom University of Suriname (ADEKUS) said a complex coincidence of circumstances is the reason for the current floods. "Part of the reason is nature's but for the rest, we humans are guilty of what is currently happening in South-East Suriname," he told de Ware Tijd. He named global warming as an example saying the temperature in Suriname has increased by 1.5 degrees in 30 years compared to just 0.5 of a degree in the entire previous century.

Workers of the Ministry of Regional Development (RO) in Albina are preparing to shelter evacuees from the flooded areas in the Upper Marowijne River region. Marowijne's District Commissoner (DC) has ordered the preparation of several lots, passage houses and toilets. The DC also established the committee 'Marwina gi Sipalwini' (Marowijne for Sipalwini) to aid in the relief efforts. (Stabroek News)

Snatcher grabbed: this thief was caught by an alert police patrol yesterday after he had snatched this chain from another person on Regent Street, Georgetown.

He failed in his escape bid and photographer Cullen Bess-Nelson snapped him as he was being whisked away by cops. (Guyana Cronicle)

David Millard, alias ‘Buffy’, arrives at the Port-of-Spain Magistrates’ Court yesterday with his bundle of clothes in a plastic bag. Photo by SUREASH CHOLAI.

Millard returned home on Saturday from Guyana casually dressed in an orange jersey and baggy pants. He had been on the run for nearly three years. Yesterday, he was attired in a flowing dark green Muslim gown with a matching taj.

Millard, 43, arrived at the Port-of-Spain Magistrates’ Court under tight security. He appeared before Chief Magistrate Sherman Mc Nicolls in the Eighth Court at 10.15 a.m. The court was packed, not only with Millard’s relatives, but with friends and relatives of eight other murder accused.

Mc Nicolls then asked Millard if he was also known by ‘Buffy’ and ‘Mustapha’ to which the accused said yes. The charge was then read.

It is alleged that on June 4, 2003 at Citrine Drive, Diamond Vale, Diego Martin, Millard conspired with Yasin Abu Bakr and Brent ‘Big Brent’ Miller to murder expelled members of the Jamaat Al Muslimeen Salim Rasheed and Zaki Aubidah. The charge, brought by Sgt Jayson Forde, was laid indictably so Millard was not called upon to plead.

Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) Geoffrey Henderson and Senior State attorney Wayne Rajbansie appeared for the State, while Wayne Sturge represented Millard. Henderson said the State was objecting to bail, saying there were substantial grounds for believing that if Millard was granted bail, he would fail to surrender to custody. But Sturge intervened right away and said Henderson’s objection was premature.

Sturge said he would not be making an application for bail. “We are not going to waste the court’s time at this stage..at least for now. The objection is premature, but we are asking the DPP to take steps to start the preliminary inquiry in the same vein that Naraynsingh had his trial.” Sturge asked for the State authorities to move Millard from the Port-of-Spain State Prison to the secure Maximum Security Prison - the same high-risk facility where Bakr is being detained without bail.

Mc Nicolls said he has no say where prisoners are kept and recommended that Sturge write to the Commissioner of Prisons. Sturge said because of his representation to persons in the conspiracy to murder case, he may not appear for Millard in the future. He said Millard may need further time to get another lawyer.

Henderson said the State would do it best to have the matter expedited. He said the State has two options - to go for a paper committal, or use the 2005 amendment to the Preliminary Inquiry (Indictable Offences) Act.

According to that amendment, if a second accused is arrested after the committal of the first accused, then the second accused can be committed direct to the High Court to join the co-accused before a judge and jury.

Bakr, the imprisoned leader of the Jamaat Al Muslimeen, was arrested on August 21, 2003 and charged with conspiracy to murder. He went on trial in January 2005, with one of the co-accused Brent Miller as a State witness. On March 16, 2005, the nine-member jury failed to arrive at a decision and a re-trial was ordered. The re-trial is listed for October 2.

Mc Nicolls then adjourned Millard’s case to May 18, advising him that he has a right to apply to a judge in chambers for bail. The hearing was over in ten minutes. At 1.10 p.m, Millard was whisked away under tight security provided by members of the Guard and Emergency Branch. (Guyana Cronicle/FRANCIS JOSEPH/Newsday)

Buffy’s shot backfires

Wanted Jamaat al Muslimeen lieutenant David "Buffy" Millard's attempt to evade deportation from Guyana by using a wrong name backfired and he was extradited Saturday. Millard, 43, aka Mustapha Abdullah Muhammad, arrived at Piarco at 5.05 pm accompanied by two Homicide Bureau officers aboard a Trinidad and Tobago Air Guard Cessna airplane.

He was taken directly to the Coast Guard's Air Guard hangar, where a warrant for conspiracy to murder was served on him. He was then processed by the Immigration Department and handed over to the custody of the Homicide Bureau. Saturday night he was taken to the Bureau's headquarters in Port of Spain for interrogation.

Millard was held at a house on Lot 111 Collingswood in the upscale Nandy Park on the East Coast of the Demerara River in the Georgetown suburbs on Tuesday. He told Police he was doing bodyguard work for a businessman who Police in Guyana suspect is involved in the drug trade and is part of a mercenary group known as the "Phantom killers".

When he was arrested Millard told the Guyana Police that his name was Edmund DeFrietas and that he was a United States citizen. Millard also filed papers to block his deportation to Trinidad under the name DeFrietas. However, he was identified by local Police as David Millard through his fingerprints.

The Sunday Express was told that T&T's Attorney General John Jeremie contacted his Guyanese counterpart Doodnauth Singh and informed him that there was a warrant out for Millard and made a request for extradition. Jeremie also spoke with Guyana's President Bharrat Jagdeo on the matter.

Local Homicide detectives went to Guyana Saturday where they identified Millard as the person wanted here and that they had a warrant for his arrest. They said that the person known as Edmund DeFrietas was not wanted here and there was no reason to deport that person. However, because Millard was positively identified, he was deported.

Millard was co-charged with Imam Yasin Abu Bakr with conspiracy to murder Salim Rasheed and Zaki Abudiah on June 4, 2003. Bakr's case was sent for re-trial and the matter is listed to be heard on October 2. Millard fled Trinidad on July 3, within days of the warrant being issued for his arrest. He was booked to stay at the Le Meridien, Pegasus Hotel, in Georgetown for seven days, but never checked in.

Based on the legislation Millard is expected to be indicted by the High Court on the conspiracy charges and will go to trial as soon as October 2. Millard is also wanted in connection with the murder of Jillia Bowen and the attempted murders of Rasheed and Adel Ghany at MovieTowne on June 4, 2003. He will be questioned by Homicide detectives in connection with this.

Millard, a St Mary's College graduate, joined the Jamaat al Muslimeen in 1995, soon after he was either deported from the U.S. or fled as sources say he was wanted by "the underworld". Millard went to the U.S. around 1980 soon after leaving CIC and had stints both in New York and Miami. Millard soon developed a very close relationship with Bakr and was said to have the "Imam's ear". He also had very close ties to slain gang leader Mark Guerra.

Millard had worked as a URP area manager under both the UNC and PNM and in 2002 was given the job of NHA programme director of the refurbishing project. Months after getting the post he fled. (Guyana Cronicle/Trinidad Express)

Trini terrorist suspect gave false name

How did Abu Bakr right hand man get Guyana passport?

The Trinidad terrorist suspect nabbed in a Joint Services raid on a house south of Georgetown earlier this week, is not the man he claims to be, sources confirmed yesterday.

The Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Thursday night announced that the man held in the raid in the continuing search for 30 AK-47 rifles and five pistols stolen from its Georgetown headquarters, had identified himself as Mustafa Abdullah Muhammad, also known as Edmund DeFreitas.

He has, however, now been identified as David Millard, well-known in Trinidad as ‘Buffy’, who fled from New York after a shooting incident and returned to Trinidad where he moved up the ranks of the radical Jamaat Al Muslimeen group led by coup leader Abu Yasin Bakr.

A top source yesterday said authorities are trying to find out how Millard found his way here and acquired a Guyana passport in the name of Edmund DeFreitas, recorded in the travel document as born in March 1960 at Bartica in Guyana.

A 9 mm pistol and 57 rounds of matching ammunition, electronic equipment, cell phones and computers were among items seized in the raid on a Nandy Park house where Millard and four others were arrested and investigators here are trying to find out what the Trinidad fugitive was up to while here. He is now thought to have been hiding out in Guyana since late 2003 when he fled Trinidad after his leader Abu Bakr was charged with conspiracy to murder.

Mustafa Abdullah Muhammad, now uncovered as the dangerous and wanted `Buffy’, also claimed he was a bodyguard for a known local narcotics trafficker (name given) and that he was involved in the coup by the Jamaat Al Muslimeen against the Trinidad and Tobago Government in 1990.

The Army said Muhammad is wanted in Trinidad for his alleged involvement in a murder attempt on a former member of the Jamaat Al Muslimeen, led by Abu Bakr. But the Guyana Chronicle understands that Millard was not involved in the 1990 attempted coup. At the time of the attempted coup, he was in New York, but fled sometime later as a result of a shooting incident. He returned to Trinidad and moved up the ranks of the Jamaat Al Muslimeen.

He never used his Christian name and everyone in Trinidad knew him as Buffy, this newspaper understands. Trinidad reporters following the case yesterday said that when the Jamaat's number three man, Mark Guerra, was killed in March 2003, ‘Buffy’ assumed that position and was considered a right hand man of leader Abu Bakr.

On June 4, 2003, in his bedroom in Diego Martin, six miles west of Port-of-Spain, ‘Buffy’ allegedly met Bakr and two others to plan the murder of two expelled members of the Jamaat. There was a shooting incident that night outside of Port-of-Spain in which one of the two expelled members was shot, but an innocent woman was killed.

On August 21, 2003, Bakr was charged with conspiracy to murder the two expelled members. But ‘Buffy’ was missing and his last departure was for Guyana, investigators believe. Bakr went on trial, but on March 16, 2005, the jury failed to arrive at a verdict. His retrial is fixed for October 2 and he remains in custody.

Last November 7, he was charged with sedition, terrorism, and incitement and that trial is yet to be held. ‘Buffy’ was jointly charged with Bakr with conspiracy to murder and if he is returned to Trinidad, he will be placed in custody and tried. Police here yesterday said he remained in custody.

Word of the arrest of the wanted Trini came as the GDF announced progress in the shocking theft of the AK-47s and pistols from a bond at its Camp Ayanganna headquarters in Georgetown. The GDF Thursday said the United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) is “working closely” with it and has helped local investigators identify several suspects in the case. It said the GDF investigation is progressing and several suspects have been identified.

The FBI assisted the GDF in conducting several polygraph examinations and interviews and the investigation produced additional leads that are being analysed by the FBI, the Joint Services and other organisations here and in the U.S., the release said. The Army said the FBI is continuing to assist with the investigation.

The wanted Trinidadian was one of five persons arrested Wednesday morning, when the Joint Services swooped on a home in Nandy Park, East Bank Demerara. Bakr is being prosecuted with conspiracy to murder several of the group's former members who had spoken out publicly against the Jamaat al Muslimeen and its practices, and who were suspected of becoming witnesses in legal proceedings against its members.

They are under surveillance by the local National Security Agency as well as the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency for suspected terrorist relations with the Middle East, as are two other Muslim factions. (Guyana Cronicle)

Stolen AK-47s:

FBI helps identify suspects

TT coup suspect held

THE United States Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has helped local investigators identify several suspects in the case of the 30 high-powered AK-47 rifles and five pistols stolen from the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) headquarters, the Army announced last night. And a Trinidadian terrorist suspect wanted by Trinidadian authorities has been held in a raid here by the Joint Services in the continuing search for the stolen weapons, the Army said.

The GDF said the Trinidadian being held by Police has identified himself as Mustafa Abdullah Muhammad, also known as Edmund DeFreitas, who is wanted by the Trinidadian authorities. The man, the Army said, claimed he was a bodyguard for a known local narcotics trafficker (name given) and he was allegedly involved in the coup by the radical Jamaat Al Muslimeen group against the Trinidad and Tobago Government in 1990.

The Army said Muhammad is wanted in Trinidad for his alleged involvement in a murder attempt on a former member of the Jamaat Al Muslimeen, led by Yasin Abu Bakr. Word of the arrest of the wanted man came as the GDF announced progress in the shocking theft of the AK-47s and pistols from a bond at its Camp Ayanganna headquarters in Georgetown.

An Army press release said the FBI is “working closely” with it in the missing weapons case. It said the GDF investigation is progressing and several suspects have been identified.

The wanted Trinidadian was one of five persons arrested Wednesday morning, when the Joint Services swooped on a home in Nandy Park, East Bank Demerara. A Joint Services source said several items were also seized in the raid.

The Jamaat al Muslimeen is a Muslim organisation in Trinidad with a membership of predominantly Afro-Trinidadians. The appeal of its doctrines to the poor and displaced classes of society has seen its membership and popularity increase. Its leader Bakr led 114 members of the Jamaat in an attempted coup against the elected Trinidad and Tobago government on July 27, 1990.

Forty-two insurgents stormed the Red House – the seat of Parliament -- and took the then Prime Minister A.N.R Robinson and most of his Cabinet hostage, while 72 of their compatriots attacked the offices of Trinidad and Tobago Television (TTT), then the only television station in the country and the Trinidad Broadcasting Company, then one of only two radio stations.

Over a six-day period members of the government, including the Prime Minister, were held hostage at gun point while chaos and looting broke out in the streets of the capital Port of Spain.

After six days of negotiation, the Muslimeen surrendered on August 1, and were taken into custody. They were tried for treason, but the Court of Appeal upheld the amnesty offered to secure their surrender, and they were released. The Privy Council in Britain later invalidated the amnesty, but the Muslimeen members were not rearrested. About 40 people died during the coup attempt, with millions in property losses.

Present and past members of the organisation have been connected or prosecuted for serious violent crimes, including drug and gang related killings and a current spree of kidnappings for ransom of members of the Trinidad upper and middle class.

Bakr is being prosecuted with conspiracy to murder several of the group's former members who had spoken out publicly against the Jamaat al Muslimeen and its practices, and who were suspected of becoming witnesses in legal proceedings against its members.

Three held with guns, ammo on Mabura road

FIVE firearms and 98 rounds of various calibre ammunition were found Wednesday when a police patrol at Mabura stopped and searched an AT 192 Carina motorcar PJJ 3847. Police said three men who were in the vehicle are in custody and the car has been seized.

Found in the car were a 12 gauge pump action shotgun, two .38 revolvers, one .32 Taurus Pistol with two magazines, one Mac 10 Pistol with one magazine, 16 rounds .38 ammunition, ten 12 gauge cartridges, 12 rounds .32 ammunition and 60 rounds 9mm. ammunition.

Gunmen have frequently attacked and robbed passengers on mini-buses on the Mabura road, plying the route between Linden and Lethem.

On April 25 last, six armed and masked men attacked and robbed a bus with Guyana Elections Commission officials and other passengers on the Mabura road after it left the bauxite mining town of Linden. The `Intraserv’ carrier had stopped on the section of the road between 47 Miles and 58 Miles for developing mechanical problems to be looked at when the gang opened fire. (Guyana Cronicle)

The murder took place on the Georgetown seawall not far from Celina’s Resort in Kitty. The victim is the son of former Guyanese boxer Kenny Bristol who is holidaying in Guyana.

Police said the younger Bristol and a female companion were about to ride off about 23:20 h when two men approached them and demanded the scooter.

The rider refused the demand and one of the gunmen fired, hitting him on the left side of his neck before escaping. The shot man was rushed to Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPH) where he was pronounced dead on arrival, Police reported. At the residence of the deceased yesterday, the atmosphere was sombre with other villagers, friends and relatives gathered to console his family.

From left: Bristol’s reputed wife, Rockel Fung, their son and Kenny Bristol, father of the slain man. (Quacy Sampson photo)

Fung said she received a telephone call, informing her that Bristol had been shot and wounded on the city seawall and she, subsequently, went to Alberttown Police Station where she saw his CE 1663 and the other woman whom the Police said was with him at the time of the incident.

Fung said the woman is being held for questioning but she does not know her. The older Bristol was Guyana’s Junior Middle Weight Champion from 1979 to 1982 and won the Commonwealth title in 1998, prior to retiring from the ring in 1982.

He said he came back here on vacation last April 8 but never thought he was coming to bury his son. The retired pugilist told the Guyana Chronicle the sad news was a total shock to him and he, too, is very confused over the demise.

He had returned from the Linden Town Week celebrations, had a bath and chatted with him before his son left for the last time he saw him alive. (Guyana Cronicle)

Police report 100 new passports stolen

The Police have reported that 100 passports were found to be missing from the office of the Deputy Chief Immigration Officer yesterday. These are blank passports that have not been issued to anyone.

Police Investigators visited the scene and found that a padlock had been sawn off to allow entry into the strong room where the passports were kept. Keys might have also been used to facilitate the theft, a police release said.

The police are advising financial and other institutions not to accept any passport bearing any of the serial numbers mentioned that may be presented for any legitimate transaction. In any such event, officials are advised to make contact with the Deputy Commissioner ‘Law Enforcement’ on telephone number 225-3650.

The police are asking members of the public who may have any information leading to the recovery of the stolen passports to make contact on telephone numbers 225-6411, 226-4700, 226-3011, 225-1744, 226-2487, 226-2488, 226-1326 or 225-3650.

All information will be treated with the strictest confidence, the release says. (Guyana Cronicle)

Police Service Commission

Police Commissioner announce promotions

The following promotions have been approved by the Police Service Commission:

a) ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER
Senior Superintendent L. Brumell
W/Senior Superintendent V. Adams
Senior Superintendent H. Makhanlall
Senior Superintendent W. Trotz

b) SENIOR SUPERINTENDENT
Superintendent K. Hope
Superintendent R. Alleyne
Superintendent M. Sullivan
Superintendent G. Vyphuis
Superintendent L. Crawford

c) SUPERINTENDENT
Deputy Superintendent S. Greaves
Deputy Superintendent W. Cosbert
Deputy Superintendent M. Ross
Deputy Superintendent N. Semple
Deputy Superintendent W. Bacchus
W/Deputy Superintendent D. Mc Donald
W/Deputy Superintendent S. Trotman
Assistant Superintendent C. Alleyne

d) DEPUTY SUPERINTENDENT
Assistant Superintendent E. Bassant
Assistant Superintendent P. Walker
Assistant Superintendent W. Jackson
Assistant Superintendent L. Kissoon
Assistant Superintendent W. Benjamin
Assistant Superintendent C. Griffith
Assistant Superintendent D. Simon
Assistant Superintendent J. Sauers
Assistant Superintendent W. Johnson
Assistant Superintendent C. Ramsay
Assistant Superintendent E. Mc Cammon
W/Assistant Superintendent M. Slowe

e) ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT
Assistant Superintendent on Probation N. Hoppie
Assistant Superintendent on Probation P. Langevine
Assistant Superintendent on Probation R. Andries-Junior
Assistant Superintendent on Probation P. Azore
Chief Inspector D. Leitch
Inspector K. Adonis
Inspector K. Bernard
Inspector D. Alves
W/Inspector A. La Fleur
Inspector L. Wilson
W/Inspector G. Whinfield
W/Inspector C. Trotz
W/Inspector M. Schwartz
W/Inspector Y. Sancho
Inspector L. Denny
Inspector C. Hicken

f) ASSISTANT SUPERINTENDENT ON PROBATION
i) Cadet Officer K. Mandall
ii) Cadet Officer B. Eastman
iii) Cadet Officer K. Pareshram
iv) Cadet Officer A. Simon
v) Sergeant 14562 L. Isles
vi) Sergeant W.14156 T. Thompson

CADET OFFICER
Constable 17977 M. Taylor
Corporal 18032 C. Brutus
Constable 19095 D. Cambridge
Constable 19506 K. Denny
Constable 19546 W. De Hearte

h) CHIEF INSPECTOR
Inspector M. Thorne
Inspector T. Mc Andrew
Inspector F. Stewart
Inspector R. Levans
Inspector W. Sweeney

i) INSPECTOR
Sergeant 10424 Kendall
Sergeant 12432 Chapman
Sergeant 10025 Schwartz
Sergeant W. 14574 Grant
Sergeant W. 11990 Fredericks
Sergeant W. 12993 Daniels
Sergeant W. 12813 Todd

Sergeant W. 16132 Henry
Sergeant W. 14318 Small
Sergeant 14214 Ferrell
Sergeant W. 15395 Robinson
Sergeant W. 13359 Beresford
Sergeant 14806 Tyndall
Sergeant 14822 Karimbaksh
Sergeant W. 18718 Saul
Sergeant W. 18719 Small
Sergeant W. 15477 Charles
Sergeant 9876 Moriah
Sergeant W. 13953 Davis
Sergeant W. 14839 Jones
Sergeant 12816 Morian
Sergeant 13939 Joe
Sergeant 12235 Sutton
Sergeant 14242 Rose
Sergeant 13078 Mc Kenzie
Sergeant 13004 Lord
Sergeant 12902 David
Sergeant 15105 Baird
Sergeant 14893 McAllister
Sergeant 14732 Thornton

2. The under mentioned promotions to the rank of Corporal to Sergeant, Lance Corporal and Constable to Corporal and Constable to Lance Corporal have been approved by the Commissioner of Police with effect from May 1, 2006.

a) TO SERGEANT
Corporal W. 0566 Jacobs
Corporal 0691 Edwards
Corporal 13344 Dayaram
Corporal 10034 Howard
Corporal 0472 Johnson
Corporal 13515 Anderson
Corporal 12870 Moore
Corporal W. 15802 Lyken
Corporal 12397 Johnson
Corporal W. 14786 Nurse
Corporal W. 13885 Wilson
Corporal W. 15070 Bollers
Corporal 12552 Benjamin
Corporal 13130 Reid
Corporal W. 16423 Thomside
Corporal 13899 Grant
Corporal 15026 Caleb
Corporal W. 14575 Leitch
Corporal 15450 Barron
Corporal 18717 Persaud
Corporal W. 13640 Austin
Corporal 13606 Kowlessar
Corporal W. 15361 Black
Corporal 15222 Higgins
Corporal 17322 Humphrey
Corporal 14083 Burnett
Corporal 14856 Cummings

b) TO CORPORAL
Lance Corporal 12056 Duke
Lance Corporal 11694 Robertson
Lance Corporal 13114 Harris
Lance Corporal 15094 Simon
Lance Corporal 14511 Rollins
Lance Corporal 12730 Nedd
Lance Corporal 15515 Singh
Lance Corporal 17742 Ramsukh
Lance Corporal W. 15103 Pitt
Lance Corporal W. 15299 Quintin
Lance Corporal 17318 Ross
Lance Corporal 18120 Griffith
Lance Corporal 17500 Vanlange
Lance Corporal 17319 Bacchus
Constable 13199 VanNooten
Constable 14863 Jeffers
Constable W. 14890 Forde
Constable 14915 Griffith
Constable W. 15110 Lynch
Constable W. 15502 Peters
Constable 16516 Adams
Constable W. 16986 Kelly
Constable 17098 Sutherland
Constable 17117 Henry
Constable 17127 Newton
Constable 17155 Charles
Constable 17326 Maxwell
Constable 17548 Hall
Constable 17613 Changa
Constable 17838 Singh
Constable 17872 Long
Constable 18001 Khan
Constable 18378 Rodrigues
Constable 18547 Nedd
Constable 18631 Stanley
Constable 18781 Beveney
Constable 19123 Shivram
Constable 19487 Jagnarine

c) TO LANCE CORPORAL
Constable 15882 Manichand
Constable 16542 Ambrose
Constable 16919 Sukar
Constable W. 17207 Blair
Constable 17629 Williams
Constable 17676 De Abreu
Constable 17677 Gravesande
Constable W. 17685 Booker
Constable 17717 Ramascindo
Constable 17803 Edghilo
Constable 17975 Major
Constable 17999 Josiah

Constable 18019 Liverpool
Constable W. 18067 Abrams
Constable 18168 Ramoutar
Constable W. 18197 Williams
Constable 18370 Noel

SPECIAL CONSTABULARY REGULAR

a) TO SERGEANT
i) Corporal W. 7552 Hill
ii) Corporal W. 7893 Milne

TO CORPORAL
i) Lance Corporal 6218 Adams
ii) Lance Corporal W. 7201 Daniels
iii) Lance Corporal W. 7597 Collins
iv) Constable W. 8313 Bobb-Blackman
v) Constable W. 11672 Roseman
vi) Constable W. 11670 Burnette

GUYSTAC
TO SERGEANT
i) Corporal W. 8870 Watson
ii) Corporal 5582 Munroe

TO CORPORAL
i) Lance Corporal 7507 Wilson
ii) Lance Corporal 9050 Yarris
iii) Constable 7675 Reid
iv) Constable W. 8183 Evans
v) Constable W. 9327 Thom

TO LANCE CORPORAL
i) Constable W. 9864 Briggs
ii) Constable 10688 Yougesh

RURAL CONSTABULARY TO CORPORAL
i) Rural Constable Roland Barrow
ii) Rural Constable Chanderdai Gurcharan
iii) Rural Constable Dorothy Peters
iv) Rural Constable Jaipersaud Ragnauth
v) Rural Constable Walter Elliot
vi) Rural Constable Steve Stoby

W.G. FELIX, D.S.M
Commissioner of Police (Guyana Cronicle)

Minister of Home Affairs, Gail Teixeira, addresses a gathering of community policing groups at the National Community Policing Executive Annual General Meeting yesterday.

“Vital information is often provided by members of the public, who are the eyes and ears of society”, said Commissioner of Police Winston Felix in remarks at the National Community Policing Executive Annual General Meeting at the Police Officers’ Mess, Eve Leary, yesterday.

“The police and the community must work together, providing much needed support and information regarding criminal activity…no act of criminality must be condoned since this would only foster the committal of more crimes,” the Commissioner said. The prevalence of violent crimes in our society, he noted, has evolved from less serious offences which are now not as prevalent as they were some years ago.

“While we have noted a reduction in crimes such as burglary, there has been a marked increase in armed robbery.We must ensure that the police are made aware of unusual activities and the presence of strange persons in communities. This is usually how planned attacks are initiated,” Felix said.

Minister of Home Affairs, Gail Teixeira, in her remarks, indicated that the changing nature of crime must be dealt with swiftly and comprehensively. “The violent nature of the crime we are experiencing now is a challenge that must be dealt with expediently. We must intensify our efforts to deal with this issue,” the Minister said. She indicated that much is to be derived from the collaboration of communities and the police, and this forms the basis for creating safer environments.

Professionalism, the Minister said, must be maintained by both the police and the community policing groups, since this is integral to confidence building and improved relations. Recognising that 2006 marks 30 years since the concept of community policing evolved in Guyana, she said, “This concept has value, and provides the opportunity for us to confront crime, thereby taking back control of our communities.”

The pivotal role which policing groups play has also been acknowledged by the National Commission on Law and Order, which has a community policing group representative on it, Minister Teixeira added. (GINA) She observed that a vehicle was given to the ‘C’ Division Community Policing Group to boost its mobility.

Several ongoing initiatives such as the neighbourhood police, and the establishment of a Crime Stoppers Programme were highlighted by the Minister, which she described as part of a comprehensive drive to enhance the criminal justice system.

Over the past weeks, Minister Teixeira has participated in the annual general meetings of policing groups in several divisions. Many of the groups received vehicles and other equipment to enhance their capabilities. (Guyana Cronicle)